Aeser
by CJ2.O
Summary: One side of the coin. Brothers Aeser and Aeshan are separated after something horrible happens to their village and Aeser is pulled into the dark depth of the war. Other side in my story Aeshan.
1. Preview

I smiled brightly as I extended my arm to help up my brother. I knew I would win at "JedI" that's why I chose it. "That settles it, YOUR going to town and getting the groceries," I said once I picked him up.

But as always I couldn't let my brother go home without me, so I went and tagged along. "You and I both know that if we played 'trooper' I woulda' kicked your ass," he said as we started to go towards the village. That didn't make me feel too happy, so I sped up, hopped on a fallen tree, and spread my arms out to keep my balance. "Yeah, but its not cool to twitch your finger and watch your opponent fall, it's a lot more interesting to be up close and personal," I jumped down and started walking backwards as I formed guns out of the fingers on each hand and pressed them to my temples, " besides Jedi can do things with their minds," I started walking forward again, "I mean wouldn't it be awesome if I could move that tree without touching it? Huh, Aeshan?"

""I admit a Jedi can beat a trooper any day, but we are way too old to be taught in the ways of the force, but we can join the army in a few years. And we can finally be closer to Dad! Maybe even in the same unit!"

I thought about that for a minute, we haven't seen our dad since we were about 4 and 5, and now Aeshan's 10 and I'm 11. Dad is a trooper in the republic army, has been since before we were born, and for some reason Aeshan has been more attached to him than I have. But it would be nice to see him again. "Yeah that would be…"


	2. The Hunt

I smiled brightly as I extended my arm to help up my brother. I knew I would win at "JedI" that's why I chose it. "That settles it, YOUR going to town and getting the groceries," I said once I picked him up.

But as always I couldn't let my brother go home without me, so I went and tagged along. "You and I both know that if we played 'trooper' I woulda' kicked your ass," he said as we started to go towards the village. That didn't make me feel too happy, so I sped up, hopped on a fallen tree, and spread my arms out to keep my balance. "Yeah, but its not cool to twitch your finger and watch your opponent fall, it's a lot more interesting to be up close and personal," I jumped down and started walking backwards as I formed guns out of the fingers on each hand and pressed them to my temples, " besides Jedi can do things with their minds," I started walking forward again, "I mean wouldn't it be awesome if I could move that tree without touching it? Huh, Aeshan?"

""I admit a Jedi can beat a trooper any day, but we are way too old to be taught in the ways of the force, but we can join the army in a few years. And we can finally be closer to Dad! Maybe even in the same unit!"

I thought about that for a minute, we haven't seen our dad since we were about 4 and 5, and now Aeshan's 10 and I'm 11. Dad is a trooper in the republic army, has been since before we were born, and for some reason Aeshan has been more attached to him than I have. But it would be nice to see him again. "Yeah that would be…"

My mind went blank as I reached the hill above our village, I saw something that scarred me for the rest of my life, and I will never un-see it.

If Aeshan said something I didn't know what it was because I was too deep in thought. They came, the one thing that was farthest from our minds, "Bounty hunters," we both said at the same time.

I couldn't think. I couldn't move. I couldn't help. I couldn't fight. I couldn't do anything…

I glanced at my brother, his face covered in tears, and all my thoughts went to the one thing in this universe worth saving.

Mother

I have to think. I have to move. I have to help. I have to fight. I have to do something…. I have to save her!

Before I knew what I was doing I was watching the burning village get larger and larger as I came closer and closer.

After an eternity I was at the villager entrance. "AESER!" I heard from behind me. As I turned I saw Aeshan's left-hand blaster flying through the air towards me. I extended my arm and caught it with ease, and turned back around.

I kept running through the streets, wanting to get to our home as fast as possible, I made a turn and right in front of me was one of the many things that had started this whole situation. A man fully armored stood in front of me, tying up one of the many people of this village. I lost control of my actions and aimed my blaster at the man, not caring where it hit, and shot.

The man seemed to step out of the way of the laser and pull out his own, I saw a blue light head straight towards me, the next thing I knew I was on my stomach facing the way I came.

Wait… Where's Aeshan? Did I abandon him? Oh God how could I be so stupid?!

I heard an electronically altered voice call to me, "Kid you got guts, I like you," he turned me over with his foot and picked me up by my shirt, "If you tell me where you live, I'll let you and your family live, granted as slaves, but that's better than dead huh?"

I thought about it, either I die, and don't guarantee that my brother and mother live, or everyone lives, but looses their freedom… "OK, deal"

I submitted myself to the stranger as he tied me up the same way he tied the other man. But he threw me over his shoulder.

As I described the way to the house I couldn't think of anything except Aeshan.

We came to the front door, and he kicked the door in, I watched silently as Aeshan attacked the bounty hunter, who swatted him back and knocked him into the back room. I could tell that the hunter thought that Aeshan was dead, but I knew better, dad had done the same thing on accident and Aeshan just walked it off, with a concussion, but that's besides the point.

"Kid you've got a beautiful mother," the hunter said. He put me down and readjusted himself as he walked toward her. Once he got within touching distance of her he took off his helmet and put his ugly face close to Mother's and whispered something.

She whimpered and stood still. The man started to take off his armor, and I closed my eyes as I realized what was happening. I tried to block out the horrible sounds, but they kept on breaking through my mental barrier, but in the middle of it I heard a blaster shot.


	3. Light in the dark

I opened my eyes to see my brother collapsing with his blaster smoking in his hand. I looked over to where the hunter was having his sick fun, and grinned to see the bastard wasn't instantly killed, but he was instead made to suffer.

With one arm now on the floor, he kicked my mother in the neck. I squirmed and shrieked through the gag that was in my mouth, tears instantly in my eyes, I couldn't let the bastard live. I know I made a deal, but he crossed the line when he laid eyes on my mother, there was no way this man would see the next day.

He walked toward, me complete ignoring his armor, and picked me up by the rope. He slung me over his shoulder before walking out into the streets, which were illuminated red and orange from the flames. Then he pressed something on his chest, that's when I noticed that he was a cyborg, apparently he was summoning his ship, one of many in a bounty hunter fleet, by the looks of it.

Who was their initial target anyway? Was it my dad? Or another republic officer? This village did have a lot of officers in it ranging anywhere from private to colonel… key word: did. It hit me like a speeder running into an Endorian tree. Everyone I knew was either captured or dead, I never thought of a fate like this. I'm going to be sold as a slave, and I will never see my family again, all my friends are gone, everyone I ever knew, never to be seen again.

His ship landed in front of us leveling a few buildings. He brought me on board and put me with his cargo. He went somewhere, I guessed the cockpit.

My guess was proved valid, as I heard the ship's engine start, and felt the ground be left behind. I said one final goodbye to my home, and hoped that my brother was OK… but somehow, I have no Idea why, I knew he was going to be just that, for a while at least.

It didn't take long for me to get used to the feeling of being in the air, but once we left atmosphere, this was an entirely new feeling, it is very hard to describe the feeling of being in the stars, but I can say this, the view isn't the only thing that's breathtaking.

After those first few hours of breaking atmosphere, it became maddening, I guessed that this was what the isolation chambers were like, all alone, nothing to do, no one to talk to, bored out of your mind, and time, inching forward at the slowest pace.

I could not tell you how long I was actually sitting in that cargo hold, but I can tell you that it felt like a few days of sitting in silence.

Once the hunter came back, he had a spare set of armor on… complete with two functioning arms… His mechanic must be a crew member.

He picked me up and started to carry me out the same way we came in. And once we exited the ship, I noticed that my prediction was right. This wasn't just some single hunter mission, this was a full blown planet side raid, taking as many hostages as possible, and killing those that they couldn't carry.

I can't explain what happened in that moment, but I… felt, for lack of a better term, the deaths, and cries of all on the planet. The grief was so strong that I Immediately spilled everything I had eaten in the past week all over the gag, myself, and the bounty hunter. He didn't like that. He threw me on the ground and commenced in punishing me.

How can sentient beings be so cruel to each other? Taking my captor for example, how can one even be so cruel to another of their own species? The galaxy ran on cruelty, but I hadn't figured that out yet, I was still a young boy that believed in people… How wrong I was.

He threw me into a room that held all the other captors, some were stripped naked, some were clothed, and some, you just plain couldn't tell. The one that I landed next to was a human girl, and I strived not to look down at what I knew was there. Everyone was tied up, but no one had their gags on except me, and she reached over with her mouth and bit the gag, not realizing what I did earlier until after she pulled it down. She Immediately turned her head and spat onto the ground with such force that I couldn't help but notice her jiggle. If I thought sitting alone for that long was torture, what her body was doing to me was downright inhumane.

"You too, huh? You felt it too didn't you?" she said, understanding what I had been through.

"How, can others be so… so, cruel?" I said.

"Its how the universe works, kindness cannot exist, without cruelty, peace cannot exist without war, love cannot exist without hate, yin cannot exist without yang," she said with a voice that sounded as wise as a Jedi's

"I… I never thought of it like that… But can't they feel all the grief that they are causing? Doesn't it sicken them like it sickens us?"

"First of all, the ability to sense those feelings is only available to those gifted in the Force, second, if they could feel the grief they would relish in it"

This threw me completely off balance, ME? Gifted in the force? "Wait a minute, are you a padawan or something?"

"Actually yes, me and my master lived on an island… they took him too… I haven't seen him since…" she got really quiet and had a look in her eyes, one I had seen in our mother every time we mentioned dad.

"It's OK you might try to suppress your emotions, but doing that, will only cause more negative emotions, its OK to have emotions as long as they don't control you, in a time like this, there is nothing to worry about, you aren't in the middle of a physical fight, your fight is mental, and the only way to win, is to let your emotions roam free." It all just came naturally to me, Mother always said, I knew just what to say.

The speech did it's magic, she wept and wept, I did my best to embrace her in a comforting manner without my arms, until I suddenly felt my arms come lose, I looked behind me to see an alien girl that had sharp fangs. Luckily this one had clothes on. She grinned at me and nodded towards the Jedi-in-training. My arms now free, I comforted her the way I was supposed to.


End file.
